Protests stop ("No Friends") Rice's mosque visit

[muriel_volestrangler]

A visit by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to a mosque in Jack Straw's constituency has been cancelled under the threat of protests.

Muslims opposed to her trip to the Blackburn mosque had planned to protest in the building ahead of her arrival, spokesman Ibrahim Master said.

Safety concerns meant the visit to the Masjide Al Hidayah mosque on Millham Street had to be cancelled, he added.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/lancashire/4860496.stm

The latest in a long line:

Poet boycotts Condoleezza concert

Roger McGough said he did not want to take sides

Liverpool poet Roger McGough has pulled out of a gala concert to welcome Condoleezza Rice to the city, amid protests by anti-war campaigners.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/merseyside/4840916.stm

Condoleeza Rice's Liverpool visit on Friday 31 March is still creating a storm of controversy. After local poet Roger McGough pulled out of a concert to be held at the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall in honour of the US Secretary of State, organisers chased Scouse actress Cathy Tyson, star of the 1986 gangland thriller Mona Lisa. However, Ms Tyson has declined the invitation too, saying she will instead join others in a peaceful protest against the war in Iraq.

http://aboutknowsley.typepad.com/news/2006/03/daily_digest_28.html